Sewing a handmade wardrobe piece by piece and my attempts at living a more sustainable life.

The heritage of lace

I have fond memories of going to Heritage Park when I was a child. Riding the train, exploring ye olde town, eating old timey candy. Last weekend I got to do all those things again, except for riding the train we took a trip on the paddle boat! It was a great day to go, sunny but not scorchingly so, and there was a farmers market with hella cheap produce! We picked up some apples, oranges, and limes for 6$. Would have got more but you had to carry it out and we didn’t come with our wagon as most people we saw had. Note to self: buy wagon!

I thought I would share with you by far the coolest thing I have seen in awhile. I know some might not understand my amazement, but being very crafty and interested in how things are constructed I was transfixed!

It’s so fun to see all the people dressed up and in character, and if your lucky and have the time you’ll even get a few stories out of them. In Thorpe House, sitting in the kitchen by a sun filled window, was a cheery woman with a lot of bobbins in front of her. Anytime I see sewing/crafting supplies my interest is instantly piqued and I had to know what was going on. She was talking to a mom and son so I had to wait my turn, but finally I got to talk to her.

I truly love lace. It can be so intricate and beautiful. Romantic and feminine. the bobbins are moved around in a pattern and the pins are used to hold the piece down and help maintain the right tension. Hearing the bobbins click together and seeing her hands swiftly moving them as she talked was mesmerizing and I could have watched for hours.

She told me she just learned how to make lace a year ago and was not that good yet but I was seriously impressed. When she really got going she said she could do about an inch an hour! I don’t think I would have the patience or commitment needed to take up this craft but my appreciation for hand made lace is through the roof!

All in all a great day where I learned something new and got scared by a person I thought was a mannequin, a very embarrassing but funny story.

I find this photo very amusing so I had to include it. I think Lyndsay’s face says it all! ha ha

Conclusion: I’ll definitely be taking a trip to Heritage Park again. I didn’t get to see it all and it’s an excellent opportunity to break out in ye olde timey slang.